When President Barack Obama told a joke at Donald Trump’s expense during one of his White House Correspondents’ Dinners, the world shifted. Few of us realized the consequences of those remarks. From all appearances, Trump has no sense of humor, especially when he is the butt of the joke.
POTUS vowed he would become president and erase everything that Obama ever accomplished. Since he moved into the Oval Office, Trump has been doing his best to dismantle any federal climate change activity to the point of removing the words “climate change” from most research documents.
Trump’s people have been easing restrictions on coal-burning power plants. As a result, 29 states and cities sued the Trump administration. In an attempt to limit how much power future administrations would have over climate change, this lawsuit restricts the major sources of pollution, according to The New York Times.
New York’s attorney general Letitia James argued against the suit, claiming that the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) had:
‘No basis for weakening an Obama-era regulation that set the first-ever national limits on carbon dioxide pollution from power plants.’
That rule was called the Clean Power Plan. It said states had until 2022 to find ways for the state to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. The federal government helped by closing plants that were particularly heavily polluting. Those sources of energy were replaced with natural gas or renewable energy. The problem with carbon dioxide is that it trapped the heat of the sun.
Professor specializing in environmental law at New York University Richard Revesz said:
‘It would have a devastating effect on the ability of future administrations to regulate greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act. It would essentially make it extremely difficult to regulate greenhouse gases effectively.’
EPA spokesperson Michael Abboud released a statement noting that the EPA did not comment on pending litigation:
‘EPA worked diligently to ensure we produced a solid rule, that we believe will be upheld in the courts, unlike the previous Administration’s Clean Power Plan.’
California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said Trump’s rule was “toothless” and referred to it as the “fossil fuel protection plan.” The EPA must use the best ways to reduce emissions that it could find:
‘The Clean Air Act requires the E.P.A. to utilize the best system of emissions reduction that it can find. This rule does the opposite.’
The last group of cities and states and to join the lawsuit, bringing the grand total to 29 (including the seven cities) were:
‘Massachusetts, California, Colorado, Wisconsin, North Carolina, Chicago and Miami.’
‘Others joining the suit include Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, and the District of Columbia, as well as Boulder, Los Angeles, New York City and Philadelphia.’
The Mueller Report Adventures: In Bite-Sizes on this Facebook page. These quick, two-minute reads interpret the report in normal English for busy people. Mueller Bite-Sizes uncovers what is essentially a compelling spy mystery. Interestingly enough, Mueller Bite-Sizes can be read in any order.
